Open Post | Weekend, August 11th – 13th
Posted on: August 11, 2023
Fast Five | Early Fall Camp Sourced Notes | August 5th
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 5, 2023
Below you will find five sourced notes. These notes are part of a larger thread. If you are interested in reading the rest of the notes, please check the Donor Board.
Got home, got unpacked, got on the phone…here are some of the sourced notes I came away with from this weeks start of fall camp.
Source said…
***Kanak is doing everything at full speed. Freak athlete looks a hell of a lot more fluid early on as compared to even spring. Less thinking, more doing.
***WR making noise has been Andrel Anthony. Looks like a veteran with his route running and has not let a ball hit the ground that is in his range. Worked over some of the top CBs a couple of times and left them in a cloud on some deep balls
***Gentry Williams and Kendel Dolby is gonna be a battle and they look like the best corners on the field early. Getting a lot of hands on balls. Gentry had a couple picks already.
***DaJon Terry isn’t going to be behind anyone soon enough. Lining up behind some (guys in) drills but everything he does is loud. The sound is just loud when he hits the sleds or bags. Quicker than a man his size should be..
***Jovantae Barnes is looking good in drills but if Gavin Sawchuk gets the lion’s share of reps when pads are on after a couple more days, he’s gonna be a problem and might just earn himself equal reps at worst to start the year. Every time he touches the ball he’s a threat to go the whole way.
Quick Observations From Media Viewing Session | Practice Four
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 7, 2023
Just got off the phone with James who was out at practice today…
Here are some of his quick thoughts:
***Team was in shorts and shells.
***Gavin Sawchuk was not at practice during the period that James was there.
***Marcus Major is a guy that always looks great and he does again this year…just needs to stay healthy
***Three deep in LB drills…first three working were Stutsman, Kanak, and McKinzie.
***Shane Whitter and Konnor Near were going early in the linebacker drills as well
***Carter and Omosigho were really flying around when they had their opportunities
***Harrington was working a lot with safeties as well as Cheetah
***McCullough was working with the linebackers when not with the cheetahs
***Schmidt looks like he is easily the best place kicker, Elzinga looks like the best punter
***QBs today had Beville running with the 3’s and Booty as the 4th, looks like that is the only real competition
***Jake Taylor was working at right tackle at second team and Aaryn Parks working with the 3rd group
***Shaffer still working at right guard and Everett is backing up Savion at left guard right now
***Andrew Raym has looked good to James, says he just gets the job done
***Gentry Williams always gets extra reps…he is important to the team and does the drills till they are right
***Kani Walker has such a different look physically out there, just a different-looking athlete…James noticed that he called the right plays each time, says he looks like a ver smart player
***Woodi also doesn’t get off the hook, he works until he gets the job done correctly
***Wagoner and Vickers, really good-looking young players, lot of energy and very coachable in the way they handle themselves
***Jayden Gibson is the guy that stood out to James, as he has in the past. Looks like a million bucks in practice.
***Venables still very hands on with the linebacker corps during practice. He is in his happy zone.
Added 11:40
***Defensive line…Terry and Paea are so big, just haven’t seen that of late in the OU DL…but they seem to move very well. Terry, Coe, and Kelley look like a formidable bunch
***Lacey still in the blue jersey, but he really looks good going through drills
***Laulu really has a nice burst and the coaches love coaching him up
***Marcus Stripling looks like a new player at 250 pounds. He goes with the top two or three in every drill
***PJ Adebawore…you can just tell he is going to be special. Very open to coaching and very attentive to the details.
Fast Five | Sourced Offensive Line Notes | Fall Camp
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 8, 2023
Below you will find five sourced notes. These notes are part of a larger thread. If you are interested in reading the rest of the notes, please check the Donor Board.
Spoke to a source regarding the offensive line and also spoke to James who talked to sources around the program about the offensive line thus far in camp.
***As we had speculated coming into camp, and we have now confirmed, right now the first line consists of Walter Rouse at LT, Savion Byrd at LG, Andrew Raym at C, McKade Mettauer at RG, and Tyler Guyton at RT. Source noted that if things go as planned, that will be the offensive line that trots out for snap one game one against Arkansas State. There is a lot of work to do between now and September 2nd, and things can change, but this is the plan as of right now.
***I know many of you want to talk about the right guard spot and McKade Mettauer, but right now, I am here to tell you, sources are very high on his work from winter workouts, through spring ball, throughout the summer workouts and now at the beginning of fall camp.
***Troy Everett was a freshman all-American center at Appalachian State last year and he is also getting work at guard in fall camp. Source said Everett has not abandoned the center position, but Bedenbaugh knows the kid is talented and he is looking for a way to get and keep him involved.
***Source said Nate Anderson is seeing time at guard and center this fall, but if Raym is settled in and clearly maintains his hold on the job (as we expect), Anderson could slide back to center full time and be his backup which would free up Everett to concentrate on the guard position this year. OU also has freshman Josh Bates at center and there may be games where he gets his reps, but look for him to get a redshirt in a best case scenario for the line.
***Jake Taylor is doing everything right and source said that his physical maturation has really turned some heads in camp. Right now Taylor is working behind Guyton at right tackle, but he is also a guy that could slide inside over time if Bedenbaugh is not happy with the progression of the interior spots. Last season the tackles were stout but the interior was a bit behind them. Source noted that the focus thus far is shoring up the interior spots and once the team hits top gear this fall, the competition will be ramped up.
Daylan Smothers Rumors
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 9, 2023
Many of you have asked about the rumors of freshman running back Daylan Smothers and his status with the team.
Last night, at 6:30 I was alerted to the rumors by our community member @Cbritter who mentioned he had heard that something was up with Daylan.
After checking around last night and throughout the day, we can report that we have heard that Smothers had expressed some frustration to his teammates and there are some around the program who believe he was/is contemplating a change. We can also confirm he has missed some practice time this week. At this time, as far as we know, he is still on the roster.
Normally we wouldn’t report on a kid missing a practice or two, but with all the questions and speculation out there, I wanted to address it as best we could for you.
That is about all we can report at this time and we will leave any further commentary about the matter to the Sooners program or Daylan himself.
2023 Bold Predictions | Offensive Side of the Ball
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 10, 2023
The 2023 college football season is just around the corner!
Let’s have some fun and take a look at some of my predictions (you can decide exactly how ‘bold’ they are).
We will start with predictions on the offensive side of the ball!
Quarterback Bold Prediction:
Dillon Gabriel will not surpass last year’s numbers in regard to total yards passed for this season even if he remains healthy for every game OU plays in 2023. Last year he threw for 3,168 yards. I believe he will have a better completion percentage this year, but I feel like OU will be even more run heavy than last year while also being smarter with the clock and game management. Plus, you add in the questions in the WR room with the loss of Mims, the need to get Jackson Arnold up to speed and the weak schedule, feels like 3,000 yards could be a ceiling for him.
Bonus: Jackson Arnold will eclipse last year’s QB2’s season total (15-30 for 102 yards) in one half at some point this year.
Running Back Bold Prediction:
Oklahoma will have one back go over 1,000 yards and one go over 850…and one over 400. Not sure if Barnes or Sawchuk breaks the 1K barrier yet, so I guess this isn’t all that bold, but the numbers are bold. I would lean towards Barnes being the guy who eclipses the 1K mark, Sawchuk grabs around 850, and Marcus Major closes out some games and gets above the 400-yard mark. Add 350-400 for Dillon Gabriel/Jackson Arnold and you have some very fancy rushing numbers.
Bonus: Tawee Walker scores at least 4 touchdowns.
Wide Receiver and Tight End Bold Prediction:
Gavin Freeman will have more receptions than Austin Stogner. Stogner is the lone proven tight end in the program at this point, but the buzz around slot receiver Gavin Freeman is so loud that I think OU partially solves the middle of the field issues through the use of Freeman and Stoops on quick throws more than through the use of Stogner.
Bonus: Andrel Anthony scores the first two receiving touchdowns of the season.
Offensive Line Bold Prediction:
Bill Bedenbaugh has his starting lineup settled before fall camp. Thats it. That is the bold prediction. Shocking, right?
In all seriousness, without an injury or barring a massive surprise, you’re gonna get a Rouse-Byrd-Raym-Mettauer-Guyton line until it doesn’t work. I think by the time Texas rolls around you could see a change and I would be watching the guard spots as I have questions about Byrds ability to stay disciplined and Mettauers ability to maintain his stamina while Everett, Taylor, Shaffer and Green will all look to push to get onto the field.
Bonus: Cayden Green does not redshirt as he sees quite a lot of action with the second team. I believe each of the guys on the second unit will see a lot more playing time than they did last year.
2023 Bold Predictions | Defensive Side of the Ball
– Charlie S – Posted on: August 10, 2023
Earlier this morning, I posted some bold predictions about the offensive side of the ball HERE.
Let’s have a look at the defensive side of the ball!
Defensive Line Bold Prediction:
DaJon Terry is named All-Big 12 and will be in the conversation for All-American by the end of the year. Terry had a good year in a backup role for Tennessee in the SEC last year and from all indications, he is a guy the likes of which OU has not had in quite some time along the interior of the defensive line. As we have noted in sourced notes, Terry is making a massive impression daily and when you combine that with the weak schedule OU faces, he has a chance to have a large impact on the field and in the stat book.
Bonus: Rondell Bothroyd leads the conference in sacks.
Linebacker Bold Prediction:
Not so bold take, but Danny Stutsman leads the Big 12 in tackles. Bolder take, Dasan McCullough leads the Big 12 LBs in tackles for loss. Danny already led the league in tackles last year, but Dasan McCullough will capitalize on the opportunities that DaShaun White left on the field last year for the Sooners.
Bonus: Kip Lewis will have a monster half of a game which will make us all question the entire ‘he needs to add more weight’ mantra.
Defensive Back Bold Prediction:
The Sooners secondary will lead the league in interceptions as a whole, led by Billy Bowman who will lead the team. Last season, before he suffered injuries, Bowman was ‘this close’ on so many occasions, I think this year he finishes those plays. Last year OU DBs recorded 12 interceptions, CJ Coldon led the team with 4. I think Bowman gets 5 this year (3 last year) and the OU DBs record 16 or so. Last year OU as a team led the conference with 17 picks, I think they repeat that with around 20 or so.
Bonus: Neither Woodi nor Gentry leads the corners in picks…the guy that will…wait for it…Jasiah Wagoner.
Special Teams Bold Prediction:
Oklahoma has not returned a kickoff or a punt for a touchdown since 2016. In the 2016 season, OU actually had both…DeDe Westbrook returned a punt for a score and Joe Mixon returned a kickoff (he dropped the ball before crossing the goalline but was credited with the score anyway).
That changes this season as OU gets at least one of each. The Sooners have a lot of options in the return game with guys like Billy Bowman, Peyton Bowen, Jaquaizie Pettaway, Brenen Thompson, etc…and I have a feeling they put some points on the board this year!
